Amaranth Breakfast Bowl with Persimmon, Honey and Tahini

by Cindi Sutter, Founder of The Spirited Table®- Recipe from the Tasting Table Test Kitchen

Amaranth may be thousands of years old, but it's our new favorite breakfast bowl ingredient. The teeny tiny grain is heart healthy, gluten free and a protein powerhouse, and we love its nutty flavor swirled with creamy tahini, sweet honey and rich coconut butter. Delicately sweet persimmon pulls it all together, adding antioxidants and vitamin A to brighten the porridge and the day. (If persimmon is hard to find, simply replace it with another fresh fruit, such as apple, pear or tangerine segments.)
This recipe calls for soaking the amaranth and buckwheat: Soaking grains and nuts not only adds flavor, but overnight they become more digestible and ultimately help you get all of their nutrients. If you don't soak the grains, you will still get a nutty, creamy porridge; just use a little more water during cooking.
Make this bowl yours by adding spices like vanilla and cardamom. Substitute quinoa, oats or millet for the amaranth and buckwheat groats, and swap out the almonds with cashews, peanuts or pumpkin seeds.

Yield: 2 servings

Prep Time: 10 minutes, plus soaking time
Cook Time: 25 minutes
Total Time: 35 minutes, plus soaking time

Ingredients
½ cup amaranth
¼ cup buckwheat groats
2 Tbsp roughly chopped almonds
1¼ cups water, plus more to soak the amaranth
⅔ cup unsweetened almond milk
2 Tbsp honey, divided, plus more to taste
½ tsp ground cinnamon
Flaky sea salt, to taste
1 Fuyu persimmon, stem removed, quartered and sliced
1 Tbsp tahini
1 Tbsp coconut butter, crumbled

Instructions

1. In a small bowl, combine the amaranth, buckwheat groats and almonds, and cover with cold water by at least 2 inches. Refrigerate, uncovered or covered, 8 to 24 hours.
2. Drain and rinse the amaranth mixture. Pour into a small saucepan, along with the water, almond milk, 1 tablespoon of the honey, cinnamon and a generous pinch of salt. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat, then reduce the heat to medium low, cover and cook at a simmer, stirring occasionally until thickened, 20 to 25 minutes.
3. Divide the amaranth porridge between two serving bowls and drizzle the tahini and remaining honey over the top (adding more honey if you like your porridge sweet). Sprinkle with coconut butter, top with the persimmon pieces, garnish with flaky salt and serve. Makes 2½ cups of amaranth porridge.